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Board Effectiveness Reviews

Strengthening the cohesion and impact of boards

Organisational success and failure have their roots in the board. Regular governance reviews ensure a board has higher levels of clarity, engagement, accountability and performance. Investing in the board is an investment in the success of the organisation’s mission.

Emphasising Relational Governance

We support boards to assess all aspects of their governance including board composition, group dynamics, structures, processes, and information flow. In our experience the board’s relational and behavioural dynamics play an equal if not greater role in the quality of the board’s debate and decision making than other governance aspects. Yet, these can be challenging for the board to surface and address constructively on its own.

Our board reviews put significant emphasis on relational governance spanning group dynamics, clarity around roles and responsibilities and the quality of debate and decision making. This includes:

  • Developing greater cohesion amongst board members and with the executive

  • Harnessing the collective power of individual non-executives and trustees

  • Improving the quality of productive decision making and debate

  • Focusing on creating the long-term vision of the organisation’s mission

  • Identifying relevant skills gaps on the board

Change from Within

True change can only be driven from within. We partner with our clients to find their own lasting solutions. Rather than simply providing the board with a long list of recommendations, we help boards take ownership of the key issues and build their own roadmap for change.

Our Clients

We partner with organisations from across different sectors, but what our clients have in common is their mission-minded nature. The exact requirements of each search are always unique.

  • "What makes Carnelian unique is their bespoke approach to the search, being flexible in terms of the demands and constraints we defined in the applicant profile… I would highly recommend them as your go-to search firm."

    – CEO, microfinance INGO

  • “We hold Carnelian in the highest regard. Consummate professionals, friendly and approachable, they made a real effort to understand our culture and mission. It was evident that they had also taken great care to build strong relationships with the candidates they recommended to us.”

    – Chair, national charity

  • "We appointed Carnelian to help us find a new Chief Executive to replace our existing CEO who was retiring after many years in post. Their work was very targeted, and we quickly found ourselves with a high-quality short-list from which we found a candidate who we felt was a perfect fit for the role. The search was handled impeccably. The team had a striking combination of both transparency and diplomacy, and I was impressed by their manifest honesty. I would certainly use them again."

    – Chair, national charity

  • “The Carnelian team’s in depth understanding of our school and its leadership needs together with their extensive experience and network was fundamental to the success of our search for a new Chair… Without Carnelian’s help we would not have made such a successful appointment.”

    – Vice-Chair, HMC school

Our Insights

Our research reports explore leadership and senior recruitment issues in the sectors we serve. We also write shorter quarterly reflections, which alongside our reports form the content of The Carnelian Quarterly newsletter.

Shepherding Success

The critical relationship between chair and CEO in faith-based organisations.

Strengthen Your Stakes

The challenges, options and best practice when recruiting trustees and developing boards in faith-based charities.

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